Accumulation of Rare Earth Elements in Various Microorganisms

The removal of rare earth elements (REEs) from solution in various microorganisms was examined. Seventy-six strains from 69 species (22 bacteria, 20 actinomycetes, 18 fungi, and 16 yeasts) were tested. Initially, Sm was used to test the removal capabilities of the various organisms. Gram-positive bacteria, such as Bacillus licheniformis, B. subtilis, Brevibacterium helovolum, and Rhodococcus elythropolis, exhibited a particularly high capacity for accumulating Sm. In particular, the B. lichemiformis cells accumulated approximately 316 μmol Sm per gram dry wt. of microbial cells. A full suite of screenings was then conducted to compare the abilities of the organisms to remove Sc, Y, La, Er, and, Lu from solution. Tests were done with solutions containing one REE at a time. Accumulation was nearly identical for the various metals and organisms. However, when solutions with equimolar amounts of two REEs were used, preferential removal from solution was observed. When an Eu/Gd solution was used, gram-positive bacteria removed more Eu and Gd as compared to actinomycetes. When Eu/Sm combination was used, gram-positive bacteria removed equal mounts of both metals and some actinomycetes removed more Eu. The selective removal was quantified by calculating separation factors (S. F.), which indicated that Streptomyces levoris cells accumulated the greatest proportion of Eu. The removal of REEs from a solution containing five metals (Y, La, Sm, Er, and Lu) was then examined. Mucor javanicus preferentially accumulated Sm and S. flavoviridis preferentially accumulated Lu. The effects of pH and Sm concentration on the accumulation of Sm by B. licheniformis were also examined. Accumulation increased at higher pH and at greater solution concentrations.